5 Important Tips For Your First Natural Deodorant

Natural deodorants cover the smell not sweat

Is this your first natural deodorant? Don't sweat it! We want your SmartyPits experience to be an awesome one, so we’ve put together a little guide to help set you up for aluminum-free success.

1. Recognize that the texture will be different than that of antiperspirants. This is a product that is handcrafted with natural oils, butters, waxes, and powders. When we crafted this deodorant, we knew you didn’t want ingredients like propylene glycol, parabens, phthalates (and, of course, aluminum).
   
   But this also means it’s going to feel a little different than the aluminum-based antiperspirants you’re used to. Rather than a gel or slick, wet glide (which propylene glycol is usually used to create), SmartyPits feels more like a solid lotion bar when it glides onto your skin.
   
   It might feel a little different than what you’re used to if you’ve never used a natural deodorant before! It might take a little getting used to if you’re accustomed to a gel deodorant, but we encourage you to stick with it—you’ll get used to it pretty quickly.
   
   
2. Find the appropriate application amount. It also means you don’t need to apply as much as you might have applied gel antiperspirants—just a few swipes will be enough. It’s important that you apply just enough to do the job, but not so much that it can’t absorb. We don’t want excess deodorant to get on your clothes, so the trick is applying as much as you need for it to be effective and not any more.
   
   
3. Find the Best Formula for YOU. Just like your body may require specific foods (you might need gluten free foods, for example, or have certain allergies/sensitivities), so does your skin. Each skin chemistry is the result of genetics, diet, environment, stress, immune response, and more…and because of this, you need a formula that is the best one for you.
   
   SmartyPits uses prebiotics to nourish good bacteria and crowd out bad bacteria. When SmartyPits is focusing on your microbiome, it uses prebiotics to help your good-smelling bacteria outnumber your bad-smelling bacteria.
   
   Your SmartyPits should support your skin type and keep you smelling fresh all day. If after one to two weeks this isn’t the case for you, please reach out to us! We have a mission to help you go aluminum free for life, so we’ll do our best to support you and find one of our formulas that might work better with your skin’s needs.
   
   
4. Tune into the ideal application frequency. Typically, if you have the right formula for your skin chemistry, you shouldn’t have to reapply unless you’ve had a really sweaty day (working outside in excessively hot weather, for example, or a 90-minute power workout).  
   
   That being said, there are some skin chemistries that may need extra applications during certain times (stress, for example, actually causes stinkier sweat than normal sweat). If this is the case for you, there's no shame in re-applying later in the day! If it's a choice between 10 seconds of reapplication and clogging your skin with aluminum and parabens, we'll always encourage you to choose the former. 
   
   
5. Remember you will still sweat.  Only aluminum-based antiperspirants can swell in the skin and block sweat. However Smarty pits' plant-based powders do absorb and wick away sweat, so you’ll feel dryer than when using other natural deodorant options like a crystal or spray.

It’s aluminum-free! All aluminum in your antiperspirant is designed to work against your body and clog up your sweat glands.

It’s phthalate-free! All of our fragrances are phthalate-free, paraben-free, propylene glycol-free, and cruelty-free. Most store-bought deodorants use phthalates in their fragrances, which are commonly used in commercial plastics and solvents.

It’s Powered by Prebiotics! Perhaps the most unique part of the SmartyPits formula is our inclusion of prebiotics, which helps to nourish the good bacteria living in your pits.